Dark Branches
by Xxforget-me-not6xX
Summary: Carmelita keeps seeing a dead Cooper(not Sly) to her horror and keeps telling her about her dead ancestor. Interpol thinks Carmelita has gone insane and admits her to a mental institute. Will she escape and figure out what does this Cooper have to do with Carmelita's past and ancestry or remain here for years?
1. Prologue

_"I…" —thoughts_

"I…" —speaking

**Disclaimer: I don't own** **sly cooper or any of the games of characters**

Prologue

_"I…I …I can't believe I'm the psycho-ward. They think I'm mentally unstable. But…I know what I saw I know what I have seen. ¡Ay, ay,ay!"_, carmelita thought.

Carmelita was admitted to a mental institution 3 months ago. She hated everything about it. The doctors, the patients, procedures, EVERYTHING! All because of that person that keeps reappear. But for some reason, only she can see him, no one else.

"Ms. Fox, it's time for your medicine again ", said a nurse in a white coat.

"Oh no, anything, that, please", a muffled plead came from Carmelita.


	2. Ch 1 Thunder, Lightning, Demons

**Disclaimer: I do not own Sly Cooper.**

_"I…"—thought_  
"I…"—speaking

"Damn, what a long day. I didn't think I would make it" the vixen said to herself.

Carmelita came home from work. Another stressful and tiring day. Guys won't stop harassing her, women won't stop gossiping. She was glad it was all over. She went into the kitchen and grabbed herself some left over Spanish food and warmed it up in the microwave. She ate, then went take a soothing, warm shower. She felt the warm water and soap relax her tense muscles and calm her. The stress, the anxiety, anger released from her being.

After getting out, she feels a cool gust of air come at her. She looks around. Her bathroom window is closed so is the door. She looks and looks and finds no signs of an opening. She shrugs and heads out into her room to dress in her nightwear, a light blue night gown with lavender trims.

The vixen, lays in bed thinking about her job again, but mainly the Cooper case. After twenty long minutes of thinking, she starts having a headache and drifts off into a light slumber.

3:45 am  
Crash!  
Lightning and thunder woke Carmelita from her slumber. And she can here the storm's harsh blowing winds. Was she frightened, no. Nervous, un poco.  
She always became a little nervous when it came to big storms. As a cub, she would whine and yip for her mother.

Flashback  
In Madrid, Spain, a storm raged over the city. Nature striking fear into its citizens.

In a room, a 3-yr-old, bluish-gray haired, light-orange and tan fox cub was sleeping when all of a sound, a flash of lightning and a crash of thunder invaded her room.

The vixen cub woke wide awake and alert, she became scared. She looked around the room to seen it anyone else was in her room. The air went cold as a cool gust of air entered the room, but nothing was open, door nor window. Another flash of lightning lightened the room to reveal a figure. It was another fox. A silver fox.

She had shackles with broken chains on all her limbs. Her fur black as the night with red splotches all over her. Her body somewhat malnourished. Menacing tipped tail with a single row of spines and white paws with red claws. Long black curly hair like Carmelita's, more wild looking. She had four on her head horns: 2 like a ram, 2 like an Asian dragon. Croc-like spines on her back. Her eyes were a blood red. The vixen had an over bite revealing her extra sharp crocodile-like teeth. Tuff of fur on the chest. On her body were bleeding slash marks as if she had been struck by a sword multiple times. The most peculiar thing was a symbol on her chase which resembled a blue raccoon.

The demon started to walk to her with one clawed hand stretched out ready to strike the cub. She laughed sinisterly, then in a soft demonic growl, "We…shall…be…ONE!"

The demon was in front of her, her hand in the air and… CRRRAASSSHHHH!

Another quick flash and an even greater crash of thunder invaded her room the poor thing whined and yipped. Ears flat against her locks of blue hair, and tail between her legs.

A dark looking, 24-yr-old vixen with black hair, fur like her daughter,but a darker shade. She had a somewhat prominent claws on her hands and feet, a cat's claw scar running from eyelid to cheek her right eye, had round notches on her ears. The only thing that didn't look scary was her beautiful, brown eyes like here daughter. She looked even scarier than her husband.  
The vixen touched her daughter. When the cub looked back, she screamed. Frightened by her own mother. Despite her looks, she was kind, gentle, but firm.  
"Don't worry hija, what's the matter?", asked Zorra Fox, the mother vixen.

"Oh, mama, la tormenta, la tormenta, it's scaring me,", Carmelita cried. "Then, then, I saw a monster, mamá."

Little Carmelita gave a detailed described of the very demon that tried to kill her. Her mother confused, angered, but yet not surprised. Strange.

She ran over to her daughter quickly.

"There, there, there, I'm here. Do you want me to stay with you tonight?"

The cub nodded.

The vixen climbed into Carmelita's bed and curls into a ball with her tail wrapped protectively around her cub. Zorra sung a soothing lullaby to Carmelita. As she sung, the cub yawned and curled into a ball and quickly fell fast a sleep. The vixen smiled.

Zorra looked at her room angrily. A flash of lightning, once again lightened Carmelita's room. The demon reappear with a deranged grin on the face, laughing softly, evilly. Zorra, careful not to wake Carmelita,made a soft, but menacing growl , curl her lip bearing own teeth at it.  
There was something that she knew and never wanted her child to deal with, much least know.  
End of flashback

Carmelita then remember the very demon she saw. It looked real. And Zorra, what really made her suspicious that night was her reaction. She believed her. Most parents tells their young children that it was just a bad dream, maybe they were seeing things, check their closet and under the bed and say they didn't see anything. But, her mother, she knew something was up.

4:00 am  
Carmelita went back to sleep 10 minutes ago only to have the storm wake her again. As she woke up, another cold gust of air entered the room. Lightning lit up the room. On the second lightning strike, there, the demon reappeared. The vixen looked in the direction and saw… her.  
She did the same thing she did last time: walking toard her with on claw out, grinning laughing, quoting the same phrase, "We…shall…be…ONE!"  
Carmelita closed her eyes as she was about to strike. Before the demon could, another flash of lightning lit her room and disappeared.

Carmelita still struck with terror, not noticing that she had wet her bed in the process. The layer back down onto her urine soaked bed, not caring.

_"Who was that? What is it? Why is it back? Why me of all people? What did it mean by "We…shall…be…one."_, questions in Carmelita's mind went unanswered.

For the rest of the night she had no sleep.

**Definition  
Un poco - a little  
Hija - daughter  
La tormenta - storm  
Sliver fox - red fox with black fur**, **not another species of fox**


	3. Ch 2 Night at the Museum

Disclaimers: I don't own Sly Cooper

"I…"— thought

"I…"—speaking

8:00 am

Carmelita was in her office with her head on her desk, mouth drooling, snoring. Last night she hadn't gotten much sleep. In fact, she didn't sleep til 5:30 am. She woke up at 7:00 and had to rush to take a shower, eat breakfast, and get dressed.

Outside her office…

Chief Barkley was walking down the hall to her office. Upon entering, he found the vixen knocked out on the desk. Of all the people in Interpol, she had to sleep during her shift. He already was having a stressful day at the office.

"INSPECTOR FOX!", Barkley yelled infuriated.

No response.

This infuriated him even more. Today was really not his day.

"INSPECTOR CARMELITA MONTOYA FOX, YOU RED CANINE, WAKE UP THIS INSTANT!"

This time little movement showed could hear him, but real response.

Now he had no choice, but used his last resort effort to wake heavy sleepers on the job, especially canid employees. Barkley took out his blow horn, used corks from his wine to cover his badger ears, put close to Carmelita's head, but not to close to make her deaf, the…

"HOOOOONNNNNNKKKKKKK!"

Instant reaction. The poor fox jumped up from her set with a loud dog-like yelp.

"Where am I?! What's going on?!", said a startled Carmelita.

"You're here in you office, sleeping on the job. I'm surprised it would be you of all people.", said Barkley in a disappointed tone.

"Sorry, I kinda had a rough night. What do you need me to do, sir?"

"You been assigned to the museum to guard 2 new objects that has arrived from Dragon's Breath Point, Haiti."

Barkley gave a couple of pictures to Carmelita. One looked like menacing armor, black with purple trims. The other picture were a pair of talisman. One blue, one black. The blue one had the Cooper insignia with some weird tattoos and a second one looked similar, but it was black with 4 horns, 2 saber-like canines, and blood red eyes. Similar to the demon she saw.

Upon looking at the demon talisman, she froze memories from last night and 21 years ago. Barkley looked at Fox with a weird look.

"Uh, Inspector Fox. . Are you ok?"

"Huh, what?

" I said are you up for the job?"

Carmelita shook her head to focus. "Yes, I am. Knowing Cooper it would be too good of an opportunity to pass up."

"Right you are. Your the best officer we have for this job. Anyways, you will go at 8:00 pm. Now don't fail me this time, is that clear?"

"Yes,sir."

The chief nodded and Carmelita got straight back to work.

8:00 pm

Carmelita has arrived at the museum. The director, a tabby cat, guided her to the exhibit where the items are held.

"Mr. Director, what are these exactly? Are they that valuable."

"Why yes of course."

The director pointed to the case that held the two talismans.

"The blue on is thought to have belonged to a Cooper long ago. No doubt that Sylvester James Cooper will want to steal it. Probably thinks we stole something from his family."

Carmelita looked the black demon talisman next to the Cooper talisman. She found the second one to be more interesting.

"What about the black one? What do you know about it?", she asked out of curiosity.

"That we don't know. They were both found in a Cooper's grave site. Both could belong to him."

"I guess…wait…grave site. You took this out of a Cooper's grave site? Sorry to say this, but that's low, I mean wouldn't that be desecrating his family's grave? I can see why he would steal this, maybe return it even."

"But look at this piece of treasure. Beautiful isn't it?" Asked the Director for Carmelita's opinion.

All she replied,"I guess so."

The Director looked a the time.

"I shouldn't keep you from your job. Otherwise I would be stalling for Cooper and company, then I'd be the real person to blame. Anyways, best be going."

The tabby cat director left, leaving Carmelita in the museum for the majority of the night.

Meanwhile…

Outside the museum.

A bush tail figure was standing on a apartment roof right across the museum.

"Hey, Bentley, you there I'm outside the museum.", a raccoon spoke to a turtle in the binoccucom.

"Yes Sly I'm in position. Right now I'm hacking into the first security system to deactivate the vent lasers.", said the box turtle.

"And Murray?"

He'll take care of the guards outside guards on the roof. Leaving the roof open vent open for you to enter. Meanwhile as you make your way to the talismans and armor, he'll disguise himself as Francoise Beau, the top security guard of he museum as well as a hippo himself. Since he's guarding the indoor entrance to the Haitian Exhibit all that Carmelita knows about him is that he's a hippo, that makes him perfect for the job."

"Great!"

"Ok. Vent lasers down, time to move on to the gate locks."

Sly made his way over to the roof, seeing that Murray did his part.

"Alright here I go.", Cooper thought. "They should have never found those talismans, much less disturb my ancestor's grave. They don't know what their dealing with."

Inside, the museum, Carmelita was checking on every exhibit. Each exhibit was clear so far. There was one more exhibit to check, the Haitian Exhibit. As Carmelita came close to the door, she saw "Francoise" outside guarding the entrance.

Murray

"Uh Sly, you there yet?", asked Murray through his earpiece. Carmelita headed his way.

"Almost, is Carmelita coming?",

the master thief responded.

"Yeah, what should I do?"

"Let her in.", Bentley intervened through the earpiece. "If she checks that everything is clear in the Haitian Exhibit, she'll leave. By the she returns to check exhibit again, our job is already done here."

Carmelita stood in front of Francoise. As she looked up at him, she had a vibe. He looked like that hippo Murray. She knew that Francoise was also a hippo, but she shook it of as a mere coincidence.

After few seconds of staring Murray final said, " Inspector Fox."

"Francoise I need to check this exhibit. Can you please step aside?"

Murray nodded and did as he was told.

Carmelita made her way the armor and talismans. She felt weird around it as if she was supposed to keep away from it.

"I don't understand. What is it about the talismans I'm afraid of? Pull yourself together, they are just old necklaces. Although they were taken from someone grave. No one not even Sly's ancestors should have anything take out of the grave. They should of been left in Haiti. The trouble the ringtail will be going through to get back for his family. But he's still breaking the law and I won't let my emotions get in the way of my job.", Carmelita had wondered. "Why do I have a feeling the museum made a terrible mistake of bringing the artifacts here?"

A cool gust of air came out nowhere. There are two reasons for this: an open window meaning Cooper was in the building or she was back She tried to see if any of the windows were open. None. That narrows it down. She was here.

Soft pittering-pattering echoed through the room. She turned around with shock pistol in hand. Nothing

"Hello? Show yoursel!", Inspector demanded. She shivered like no tomorrow.

The patters cease. Head turns to the left, right, back again, but only find emptiness.

Silence.

Pain. Sharp pain ran down her leg. she sees a large sanguine stain on her right leg.

"Where that come from?!", she shouted.

Another jolt of pain, on her left hip. Another stain on her skirt. She screams finds herself falling. Her ankles involuntarily twist right on top of left.

"Please stop! Leave me alone."

The pain was horrible. She was on a verge of tears.

The painful torture did not stop. Scars appear out of nowhere. On her belly, chest, and

Face. Bite marks appear. She felt only three things, pain, fear, and worst of all, helplessness.

Screams of terror filled the room, but no one could hear her. No one to help. She started to cry softly. She was fading. Black out.

Sly Cooper had just arrived to the room only to find her screaming in pain. Large sanguine stain on her right leg and blood trickling from the scars. Bloodily to his horror.

On thing that confused him, it was nothing that was doing this. Absolutely nothing, but it was able to do something such as clawing through flesh.

"CARMELITA !"

The raccoon growl in anger and jolted out of the vent. He ran to his beloved fox and swung at the air in full force. Though, when he swung his cane.

WHACK!

It went did hit something, but there was nothing. He took another swing.

WHACK!

There was something there, something doing this to Carmelita.

The nothing stopped. I was not over. Sly could hear foot steps running toward him getting louder and louder. He stood behind the talismans' case. At the nothing's final step, the blue cross scarred Cooper talisman glowed. The nothing became something. It revealed a figure, a beast.

Not too far, Carmelita woke up having to gain what little energy she had to escape only to see the phenomena. A figure, the demon has returned.

"GET THE HELL AWAY FROM US!", Sly snarled.

Sly whacked the figure once again and a cry of pain came from the figure. The figure ran away. It ran to the door where murray was on tried to chase it.

Murray was starting to get bored of waiting.

"What's taking Sly so long?", he thought.

The door burst open. BLAM! Murray was hit.

"What the…", he shouted. He looked inside to see Sly running to him."Sly? Sly! What's going on?"

He wasn't listening. Sly focused chasing that thing, yet no tracks were left behind.

"SLY!"

The raccoon turned toward the hippo with fear on his face.

"Bentley, call the ambulance. Carmelita's hurt.", he called out to Bentley ignoring his other brother.

"Sly is everything ok?", Bentley asked worried.

"Just call them Bentley! Carmelita's wounded."

"And the artifacts?"

"Forget it. Right now Carmelita is more important."

"Sly, your scaring me, bro."

"Murray I need your help with Carmelita."

"What happened?"

"I can't explain. All I saw was Carmelita screaming in pain. She had scars and a 3 large gashes on her lower body. I explain the rest later."

The two went inside to help vixen.

To Carmelita, the world was spinning. Then fading again.

Last thing she sees, is a raccoon and a hippo coming other rescue. Black.

Midnight

The ambulance and much of Interpol including Barkley was here. Carmelita was lifted onto a stretcher a lifted up into the ambulance. The ambulance sped toward the hospital.

Back at the museum, investigations took place. Questions asked.

With all the commotion, nobody noticed a three security guards go out to the back of the museum. There they enter a van and sped away.

They three later pulled into an seemingly abandon home. The vans pulls into an underground garage. A hippo, turtle, and raccoon all in security uniforms come out.

The raccoon heads upstairs.

"Hey Sly, where are you going?", asked Bentley.

"To my room. I need to think for a moment. Night."

"Night.", the other brothers said in unison.

In Sly's room, in his bed, Sly kept wondering what he saw in the museum attacking Carmelita. The attack fresh in his head was being replayed. The blood, screams, figures, the whole thing.

_"Well, whatever it was, it gone, for now."_, he thought as he went to sleep.

**A/N**

**Next two chapters are coming up, so plz be patient. Tool me two days to get thru with this chapter. **

**C u soon.**


	4. Ch 3 Of Dreams and Danger

_"I…" - thought_  
"I…" - speaking

Next Morning  
Carmelita Fox wakes in a white room. She sees two needles: one attached to the I.V. and the other to the heart monitor. She's in the hospital.

The door opens, Barkley and a doctor enters the room.

"Glad to see you awake Ms. Fox.",  
the doctor greeted. "You feel okay?"

"Yes. I'm fine.", Carmelita answered.

"Tell us what happened. We need to figure out who did this to you.",  
said Barkley. "Tell us who did this to you."

Carmelita thought about what to tell her boss. If she tells him that a ghost or invisible demon attacked her, they'd think she's gone insane and she'd lose her job. All Interpol officers had to be sane to do their job.

She was broken out of her thoughts. "Take it easy chief, she just woke up from a attack."

"I bet it was Cooper.", chief accused.

"No!", Carmelita shouted. Both looked at her in confusion. "Cooper didn't do this. Was there, to steal the artifacts, but saved me instead. The artifacts are still safe in the exhibit."

Both the doctor and Barkley looked at Carmelita as if she was crazy.

"But, he's a crimina…"

"I chase Cooper long enough to know that he refuses to harm the innocent and the law. He's not that kind of thief."

"No, Barkley, remember what I said. She just came out of an attack. She needs to rest. Why don't you look at the museum's security tapes?", the doctor suggested.

"The tapes were disabled. My guess Cooper's brainiac friend was behind it.", Barkley stated sadly.

"At least it's over. Come on, we need to and she needs to rest. Inspector Fox, you'll be out Wednesday.", said the doctor as he and Barkley left.

Later that night…  
Carmelita tossed in the hospital bed. Constant winces and soft whines escaped her mouth.  
Carmelita finds herself in a house. A house she never been into. She looks around and notices the she has no scars and marks and her right leg perfectly fine. She explores the home and comes into a living room.  
She sees a picture on the wall. A young raccoon cub holding a ballon. Next to him on both sides at raccoon boar* to his right hold his hand and a raccoon sow* to his left. His parents. Carmelita turns around and sees a closet cracked open. She peeks in to find Sly's cane.

"Cooper, you here?", she called. No answer.

She hears someone running. She follows the sound into the kitchen.

"This isn't funny Sly."

More running. She follows again into the living room.

"Sly, I swear if this is a prank you and your pals are trying to pull, I'll…"

She turns around and sees the cane Cooper cane missing. Then more running. The foot steps entering the living room. She tenses with fear.

"Just please, stop."

Around the corner of the kitchen comes a shadow. She has nowhere to run. Then a figure comes.  
He sees a raccoon in black, tattered shirt and a pipe in his mouth. He looked just like Sly, only older, in different clothing, a little thicker, and taller.

"You must be the fox that Sly keeps his eye on. Carmelita Fox is it?", he said.

"Sí. Who are you? I want to know what the hell is going on.",Carmelita demanded.

"You don't remember me? It's me Connor. We've meet before…when you were really young."

Carmelita looked at him a confused look. "I know your Sly's father, but I don't know anything else about you nor remember meeting you."

"Like I said, you were real young."

"Okay, tell me why am I here and why are you in my dream?"

"To warn my daughter, about Muerta."

"Wait, whose Muerta? And whose your daughter? I thought you only had Sly as your only child?"

"People don't know this, but the Cooper males tend to have more than one mate and you are one of my daughters."

Carmelita look at Connor in complete shock."Im…impossible. How? I'm a Fox, not a Cooper. I was raised to uphold the law, not to be a thief. Además, I'm a fox, not a raccoon."

"Correction your a fox-raccoon hybrid. But,it's true, you are third daughter."

"If so, where are my ringtails and mask?"

"Maybe you were born that way. I'm surprised you didn't develop any tail rings much less a mask.

"I don't believe you."

Connor chuckled. "I know you don't, especially if your an officer of the law and this coming from the world's greatest master thief."

Connor heard a howl form outside.

"What was that?", the fox asked with a hint of concern.

"The demon that's been haunting you is Muerta, and she's come, for you."

"Why me?"

Loud bangs came from the door. It grew louder at each bang. The door started to break. CRACK! An arm reached out of the door clawing the air towards them.

"Come with me." Connor grabbed Carmelita by the wrist and ran out the back door. It was a matter of time til Muerta broke in. The ran to forest to sinkhole.

"Jump.", the raccoon commanded.

"What? In there?"

Muerta and 3 other hyena like demons jumped out from behind the bushes behind them."Give me the fox!"

"Never! Not now, not ever." Connor stood his ground in front of his daughter.

"Have it your way. Hyenas, attack!"

The hyenas charged after the vixen. She froze in fear. She couldn't move not even a muscle.

"Carmelita, jump."

She just stood there.

"Carmelita!"

Mouth agape, eyes wide open, paralyzed.

With one last resort. Connor pushed her into the sinkhole. As the darkness swallowed her, all she could hear from Connor, "I be there, young one."

She wakes up. It was all in her mind.

The dream continued to play in her head. Connor, Sly's father, was actually her father as well. Making Sly her half-brother.

"Muerta.", she growled at that name.

Again she couldn't sleep, but not for fear.

**Sorry it took so long it wanted to get this done on Friday but I was still changing things around.  
Boar* - male raccoon, pig, or bear  
Sow* - female raccoon, pig, or bear  
Ch. 5 is on its way**


	5. Ch 4 Muerta Strikes Again

2 days later…  
Carmelita was finally out of that hospital. She could start working again the next day.

She was driven home by cab. She enters her apartment still a little tired from her restless nights at the hospital. She goes directly to to the kitchen for lunch then to bed for a nap.

3:00 pm  
Sly was running through the roof tops of Paris towards Carmelita's apartment. He was still rattled up about the mysterious attacker that injured her. At this point he only knew that the talismans back at the museum had some kind of connection to this. The Thievius Raccoonus did have some bit of info on the talismans, but not enough. Only who this demon was. The little information they could get where from Haitian historian website, but still not enough.

Apparently, the talismans contains the two souls: one his ancestor Henrietta and the soul of Muerta, an old enemy.

The two fought for years. Muerta's goal was to recover the 13 Aztec Crystal Skulls use its power to conquer Latin America for power and control.

It was said that she hired various pirates to kill Henrietta, since she always got in the way of her plans. One day, after another humiliating defeat by Henrietta, she met Clockwerk. Since he wanted the Cooper line dead, Muerta joined his side to kill Henrietta. Though rumor hah it that she soon planned to kill Clockwerk afterward since she didn't want someone more powerful than her to control her while ruling Latin American.

When Muerta found all 13 skulls, she put her plan into her plan was coming together, she and Henrietta both fought to the death in one final battle. Muerta was killed and her soul sealed.

After the soul was sealed within the talismans. Henrietta kept it around her neck until her death.  
before her death she asked , her husband, a Haitian raccoon voudist , to seal her soul in another talisman and to bury both of them with her body in Dragon's Breath Point. When she died, he did as she was told.

_"But why was she after Carmelita?"_, Sly thought.

He arrives at her comes to the front door and knocks. Carmelita was doing some case files that she picked up on her way home. Since she couldn't do much with her leg in stitches, all she could do was do paperwork for the next week or so until her leg heals.

She hears a knock on the door. She looks into the peephole. It's Sly. Smiling his signature smile.

"What is he doing here…in the middle of daylight?", Carmelita said to herself.

She opens the door. Sly comes right in. She turns to him and crosses her arms in suspicion.

"What are you doing here?", Carmelita was curious.

"I just want to come by and see how you were doing. That mysterious attack had gotten me riled up a bit.", Sly explained nervously.

"Wonder why Carmelita didn't take out her shock pistol."

"Thanks, for saving me." Sly's thoughts were interrupted. "I was so afraid. I haven't been this scared since, I was three. It felt so real like someone…something was actually there."

"Did you tell anybody?"

"No. They'd think I'm a nut! I would lose my job."

"What about the security video from the museum. Use that as proof."

"They can't. Bentley disabled them during you heist, remember?", Carmelita said a little annoyed. " Speaking of the heist, why were you trying to stealing the armor and talismans."

"Both the talismans and armor belonged to one of my ancestors. They have a special power that was not supposed to be recovered. Like what you saw last night before passing out, that was one of its powers."

"Revealing invisible beings. What about its other powers? Do you know what they are?"

"No. We don't have as much information right now. All my gang knows from the Thievius Raccoonus is that the contain 2 spirits. My ancestor, Henrietta "One-Eye" Cooper's soul in the black scarred talisman and Muerta in the orange. They were enemies until their final battle. "

"What does it have to with me?"

"Don't know."

"Are you going to steal them again?"

"No. After telling the gang what happened, we agreed to not to steal the talismans and armor until we find more info on these things.  
It already attacked you and came close to killing me. It's not safe."

Carmelita sighed in relief. Sly going back to steal that thing and have him risk his life getting captured or killed by either Interpol or the demon was the last thing she wanted.

"You okay?"

"Yeah."

"Look on the bright side. You don't have worry about us for a few days."

"Guess so ringtail, but that doesn't mean your off the hook. Interpol will send someone to find you."

Sly started to chuckle a little as he left the kitchen to the front door.

"See you soon inspector."

The raccoon climbed the pipes up to the roof. Carmelita watched as he leapt from roof to roof.

Carmelita felt safe around him as if he was her guardian angel.

Back at the safe house…  
"Sly, where have you been?", Bentley asked worried sick.

"I've been with Carmelita.", he answered.

"What? Tell me you didn't tell her that we are going of to town."

"Don't worry. I didn't tell her. Sides even if I did she's on strict orders by the doctor and Interpol not to chase me. And I don't think Carmelita is gonna tell them where her prize catch is. Don't want anyone else to capture me before she does."

"True, but still…"

"Stop worrying. We'll only be gone for a week or two. We left her alone in Paris back in Pacific for few days. I'm sure she can take care of herself."

"I guess so.", said the worried turtle.

"Alright. Where's the big guy?"

"Right here.", Murray shouted back from in front of the van. "The van already to go."

"Next stop: Haiti!"

The next day…

6:00 pm

Carmelita was in her office doing some of the case works that managed to pile up while she was gone.

So far she only finished half of the case files. Barkley was at a meeting.

After the attack and to prevent herself from going out to look for Sly with an injured leg, they had put her in close surveillance. Carmelita felt trap here.

"Can't believe I'm stuck here. Está bruja estupido.", Carmelita was aggravated.

The alarm went off, meaning a crime was in process. Carmelita gathered her shock pistol only to be stopped by Winthorp by the door. "Sorry Inspector Fox, remember what the the doctor and Barkley said."

"No, criminal chasing.", she grumble under her breath. "I can't believe I missing all the action."

Carmelita sat back down to do all the paperwork that needed to be done. Winthorp left leaving Carmelita alone.

15 minutes later…  
Carmelita sat alone in the office doing the case files. She was bored out of her mind. What the point of being an officer if you can't do you duty, especially with an injured leg?

The went cold all of a sudden. Carmelita noticed immediately and started to search the room frantically. She saw her office window open to her relief.

"Okay, chica, tú tienes justo un poco paranoia. Relax.", she said to herself. "Alright Carmelita, you're alone, but you've been alone in the building many times before no different. Just go back and do the files little you always do."

Cool wind came again. Both the window and door is closed, which means…Muerta.

"Tell we are one.", a voice spoke up. Carmelita turns around. Sees nothing. She knew that who was here. Muerta.

She need to escape. She got out from her chair and dashed out of the office. She ran down the hallways. She could see Muerta chasing her. Carmelita ran faster. As soon she took cover behind a corner, she loaded her shock pistol. She came out began to fire at the demon.

The demon dodged her shots. Carmelita fired again. As the blast neared, she dodged the shot and it reflected against a bullet-proof window and shocked Carmelita instead. The vixen was temporarily paralyzed for a brief minute or two.

As Carmelita got up against a wall. Ran toward her and pinned her against the wall. She threw Carmelita to a near by desk. The she-demon walked towards her and started to scratch deep, bloody lacerations into her belly, chest, sides, and thights. Muerta laughed sinisterly as she injured the fox. This was utter torture.

"Please stop. What do you want from me?", she whispered softly at the monster.

"First, revenge. Then, your body.", whispered.

Muerta took out a a staff.

She started the incantation. Out of nowhere, an orange swirling vortex appeared on her chest. The demon laughed at the vortex as it began to pull her in like a black hole. Then it hit Carmelita: she was getting a new body, by taking hers.

Carmelita look down at her arm and sees she still had her shock pistol. Carmelita used the last of her strength to lift up the pistol.

"You only get one shot, or else, game over.", she thought.

She aimed it at, pulled the trigger, and…BANG. Muerta was sent flying back. The vortex disappeared to he relief. Muerta look up, the vortex, her chance, gone.

"NOOOOOOOO!", Muerta screamed. She heard some coming to the door. Thank,God. She knew she had to leave. "Damn it! Next time, my child. Next time. I will soon have my new body. Then kill Cooper and Zorra. Then revive my plans."

"Just go, bruja. Just go.", she said as she fell unconscious.

With that she disappeared.

The door opens. The crew had just finished thief job. They find the place a mess. Barkley comes in with some files. He sees his employees frozen. He pushes his way through and finds the office a mess as well.  
Papers burned, scratches on the wall, bullet shots. Both he and the employees were infuriated.

The badger marched off the Carmelita's office screaming at the top of his lungs, "FFFFFOOOOOOOXXXXXXXX! You better have a good explaination on why on what happened to this office or else you…are…"

Of course, his rants halted when he saw the fox's lifeless body. Life slipping for her very body. A pool of blood formed around her. Her were becoming glazed. Gums blue. She was in shock.

"Inspector Fox!", the badger ran to her. "Fox?(Slap)Fox!(slap) Wake up, please, wake up. You just got to be alright."the badger lightly slapped her to see she was still alive. No response.

The badger checked her carotid artery for a pulse. Faint.

"Someone, call an ambulance. She needs immediate help."

One of the officers took out their cellphone and called dialed 911. It rang 3 times before anyone could answer.

"Hello. Yes, 911. Yes, we have an emergency. Interpol HQ. Carmelita Montoya Fox. Yes, the Inspector Carmelita Montoya Fox. She's just been attacked. We think she's in shock. Please hurry."

"Everything will be alright. It gonna be okay.", Barkley calmly whispered to her.

Carmelita lightly stirred hearing her boss's voice. "Chief.", she said in a child-like voice.

"Just stay with us.", he said in a soft tone.

Within 5 long minutes, the ambulance arrives. News reporters were already there filming the scene.

Reports  
Reporter 1: komodo dragon  
"We just got a word live from Interpol that Inspector Carmelita Montoya Fox was found unconscious in the hallway of the Interpol HQ, top floor."

Reporter 2: lioness  
"Inspector Carmelita Montoya Fox, found injured and brutally attack most to the upper floor officers were out on pursuit of a crime spree. No word from Chief Barkley yet.

Report 3: baboon  
"Failed assassination or just a coincidence. Inspector Fox, deeply and severely wounded. She had just returned from a museum assignment to guard the newly arrived armor and talismans 4 days later. Found injured on the scene in museum and now injured again here. At both times she was attacked."

Reporter 4: French poodle  
"As you can see right here Interpol HQ is as of now are one high alert. Then what we see here is Carmelita Fox being carried out on a stretcher and is now being loaded on to the ambulance."

The ambulance speed off to the hospital with a group a four cop cars escorting it. Some of the news casts vans followed the ambulance.

Back at HQ Chief Barkley was being bombarded with questions from the press.

"Barkley, is it true that someone wants her dead?"

"Is Cooper some how connected?"

"Is she still alive?"

"Chief Barkley, rumor has it that when ever Inspector Fox in in danger, it's always the Cooper Gang that save her, am I right? If so, why didn't he come to her rescue this time?"

Barkley ran inside the building and order two officers to not left anyone in. They did as they were told.

The ambulance arrived at the hospital. The medics wheeled the stretcher to the emergency room. Carmelita was immediately hooked up to the IVs and given blood transfusions. The doctors worked hard to stabilize her. In the process. He heart had stopped 3 times before it was stabilized. Judging by the wounds, they thought she wouldn't make it.

She did.

After a long night, she was put into hospital room 210.  
There she spent to rest of the night in the hospital. The hospital was too, on high alert. Guards had covered all floors of the building.

Back at HQ, Barkley was taking out the tape from the security camera to figure out who her attacker was. For a moment, Barkley thought to himself, "If what Inspector Fox said was true about the Cooper Gang always saving her from certain death, the why didn't they come this time? Where are they?"


	6. Ch 5 Tough Choices

Ch.5

"Ay, ¿dónde estoy?", Carmelita grumbled to her self as she was waking up.

A bright beam of the sun's ray landed on her face. She looks up and sees that she's in a forest. Then sees her wounds completely healed. Not too far away, she sees Sly's old home. She was back.

"Hey there. I see that your awake.", a familiar voice greeted.

She looks back and finds Connor standing in front of her smiling."What's going on?"

"Your in the hospital right now,sweetheart. Just asleep. You almost died. Barkley and his officers were returning from the crime scene and found you in terrible shape. They called 911 just in time."

The vixen remembers everything. The cold, the laughter, the pain, wounds, Muerta.

She starts tearing up. Carmelita gets up and runs to him.  
Connor embraces her with a hug.  
She never felt so scared, so helpless in her entire life.

She nuzzles his neck and cries in his chest. Sobbing. "I was af…fr…afraid. I wa…was…wea…weak."

"Sh…sh…it's ok, Carmelita, it's okay. I'm here. Your safe right now.", he spoke as if she was a child. It was the first time in her life she actually knew what it was like to have a caring father. She had grown up without one.

In fact, her now former stepfather abused Zorra and Carmelita for 2 years before leaving him. The reason why she's very black and white about crime. Carmelita still doesn't know why he abused them much less marry Zorra.

Carmelita's sobs lighten as she looked up Connor's face. "I… I'm afraid to go back. I…"

"Now, Carmelita, you can stay here for a little longer if you feel that your not ready yet."

"Gracías, Con…papá."

"Come inside, you need to rest."

Carmelita follows her father to the house.

Meanwhile…  
"Detective Winthorp, what did you find out about the attacker?", the old badger asked as he walked in. He barely got any rest since last night's traumatic event.

"Well…", the otter didn't know what to say, but he knew there was no way around it. "Well, from what I saw so far…no one."

"What? What's that supposed to mean? Some one had to attack Inspector Fox. "No one" can just do it."

"That's the point."

Winthorp showed the tape. There he saw Carmelita being attacked, but nothing was there. She was shouting and screaming at nothing.

Barkley was in utter shock. What kind of trick is this?

Winthorp tapped Barkley on the should presenting him with another tape. "This just came in this morning." He drops it in the badger's paw. "It's from the museum. They discovered an old working camera in the same exhibit that captured only the beginning of "attack"."

Barkley replaces the office tape with museum tape. She screams again and is "attacked" by nothing.

The two couldn't believe it nor did they even want to. Has Carmelita gone insane? Yes. They knew they couldn't have any insane people in Interpol. What could of caused her her to become insane? Work, stress, Sly Cooper, or maybe a mental disorder. Either way they knew what they had to do, but before they could, they had to pay the soon to be former inspector a visit before making a decision.

"Detective Winthorp, your coming with me."

"Where to boss?"

"Hospital, to Carmelita. I want make sure she's alright."

Barkley grabbed his car keys. He and Winthorp got in the car and left.

20 minutes later…  
Carmelita was laying on a bed. She haven't slept this good in ages.

She smelt a heavenly smell. Eggs, bacon, pancakes, coffee. She got up and walked out of the room. She came down stairs and into the kitchen to find that Connor was cooking. She watched him for a moment in complete silence. That was until her stomach growled.

"I hope papá didn't hear that.", she thought.

"You hungry? I can here you stomach growling.", he answered without looking back.

"It's ok, I'm not that hungry."

Another growl came, this time it sound more like a roar than a growl. She held onto her stomach in embarrassment.

"You stomach says otherwise. Come on down."

Carmelita slowly walked over to the table. She started to eat slowly, but as she got into it she ate faster. She finished in no time.

"Enjoyed your meal?"

"Sí, papá. Gracias."

"De nada, mi hija.", replied in Spanish.

Father and daughter sat there for a few silent minutes before Connor could speak up.

"You know, Carmelita, I never thought I'd see you or your siblings again."

"Siblings?"

"Yup. I had five kids. You, Sly, your brothers Francis and the twins Ashley and Cristi, your older sisters. Sly is my youngest child."

"Y mi mejor hermano."

"Yeah, funny isn't it?" Connor chuckled.

"Do they know of each other's existence. I mean did you all live together?"

"No. Unfortunately. Not after that incident with your stepfather.", Connor's mood saddened.

Her stepfather was a constable to her mother Inspector Zorra Fox, but a careless, cruel constable. He believed in order and control and all criminals, from small time parking ticket receivers to master thieves, should all be punished harshly. Her mother had more heart than him. Like Carmelita, she acted justly to captors, treating most like normal people if they deserve it, even teens in jail. She was what was Interpol called people "thief lovers".

"What happened?"

"That's another story for another day, but don't worry, you'll meet them soon enough."

The two chuckled. A voice called out of nowhere.

"Inspector Fox? Inspector Fox?"

"Looks like there's some place I got to be. Sorry."

"It's ok, I understand. Nice to spend time with you. Adios."

"Hasta luego."

Carmelita walked over and gave her father a kiss before running out the door. She ran into the forest where the sinkhole was. She closed her eyes and dived into the darkness, returning to the real world.

Back in the hospital…  
Winthorp and Barkley were waiting in Carmelita's hospital room waiting for her to wake up. The fox started to stir. Her vision was blurred, but could make out the two figures.

"Chief, detective."

"It's alright, your in the hospital.", Barkley assured.

The badger sighed. The room stayed silent for awhile. Barkley didn't want to do this to his top pupil, he had no choice.

"Fox, I need to ask you few questions."

Carmelita became nervous. She knew that they were going to ask her about the attack last night. If she told them they would think she's mentally ill.

"Fox, did you hear me?"

"Huh?" She was snapped out of her thoughts.

"I'm just going to ask you a couple of questions."

Carmelita nodded.

"Alright. Do you remember anything? Do you know who attacked you? Or what he looked liked."

Carmelita took a long, hard thought on how to answer him. _"What am I supposed to say?"_

"Do you have any security tapes or even seen them?" Carmelita asked.

Barkley nodded. Carmelita sighed in relief. There was no way they could say she's crazy.

"A demon."

"A demon.", Barkley said as if it was a joke. "Are you serious? You expect me to believe that an invisible demon had attacked you."

"Yes. Wait, what do you mean by invisible?"

Barkley looked back at Winthorp signaling show the tapes. Winthorp took out two tapes from is satchel and gave them to Barkley.

"Carmelita. These are the tapes that recorded the scene. One from the museum the other night and the other from HQ.", Barkley informed.

"I thought the all the security cameras in the museum were disabled."

"All expect one. They discovered an old working camera in the Haitian exhibit that was not connected to the system. But since its outdated, it only captured the first half of the attack.", said Winthorp.

The badger had placed the museum tape first in Carmelita's hospital television. Showing Carmelita was being attacked by the demon. Then he placed in the second one. Same thing.

"I think it's all in your head.", said Barkley.

"But she's right there. Don't you see anything?"

"See what? Nothing's there", asked Winthorp.

"So,you can't see Muerta?" She finally figured it out. Only she could see Muerta.

"So you see a woman named Muerta."

"Sí."

The badger and the otter looked at each other, then at the vixen.

"Listen, I'm telling you she attacked me. Maybe you can't see her, but I can. Only I can see her and the only way you two can see Muerta is if you put on the blue Cooper talisman back at the museum. Please you have to believe me. Please."

The chief sighed. He knew Carmelita was stubborn fox and there was no way to convince her.

"Fine, be that way Inspector.", Barkley grumbled. With that he left the room, head down in disappointment. Winthorp followed.

Outside her hospital room, Barkley had his cellphone in his hand. He was dialing the place he never, ever wanted to call.

"Hello, Mental Institution? This is Chief Barkley of the French Interpol. I'm calling to admit someone into the system. Their name: Carmelita Montoya Fox.  
Yes the Inspector. I know it sounds far fetch…. Well when can I bring her in? Sounds good. She'll be there."

Winthorp's heart had broken. He had heard the whole conversation. His crush is now mentally ill. He has to face fact, they'll be together.

Barkley had hung up the phone. Then he looked at the detective. It wasn't easy for either of them to accept that they had lost their beloved Inspector. Well, now former Inspector.

_"I'm sorry Inspector, but you left me no choice."_

Def.

Ay, ¿dónde estoy? -Oh, where am I?

Carmelita's in for now. What will happen to her if she gets admitted into an asylum? Just stay right there, more chapters on their way.


	7. Ch 6 Losing it and Losing her

Next day, Thursday night…

Carmelita was asleep in her hospital room. She hasn't slept peacefully in days. Barkley had been visiting her lately. He still wasn't to sure with himself about sending her to an asylum. She was like a niece to him. He and Zorra were great friends before he become chief. He became Carmelita's mentor when she started her career in Interpol. He didn't want to see her end up in any place like that.

Carmelita had woken up to go to the bathroom. Her vision cleared. In front of her she saw a figure. It moved. Carmelita quickly ran to the light switch. She flipped it up and the glints came on. Nothing except the t.v..

"Calm down, your just imagining things.", she assured herself.

Carmelita made her way to bathroom. While in the bathroom, she heard something outside. Became very alert. Carmelita finished her business and quickly came out. She once again saw nothing.

At the corner of her eye she saw three raccoon-like figures. All three looked like they came from different eras. On the far left, was an Egyptian raccoon with saber canines and holding two sickles in his lion-like paws. His fur was dark gray and had a black lion's mane and lion.

On the far right, another raccoon beast with Asian dragon-like horns, long whisks coming from his upper lip, dragon-like talons, light brown fur, his eyes complete chocolate brown. Like the first beast, he had a slim frame. His appearance made him seem like the result of a raccoon mating with an Asian dragon.

The last one in the middle was female. She had an empty eye socket on her left eye. Her fur was bark brown, 1998 godzilla spines on her back, claws, and tail. Her ventral side was a light brown. She even had a black mane.

Carmelita looked at the sight of the beast. Are they another one of Muerta's minions or even worst. The three started to walk towards her.

Carmelita shivered in fear. Were they going to kill her? She closed her eyes and feared for the worst.

"Carmelita. It's great to see our descendent.", said the female.

Carmelita was in shock."You can talk?"

"Of course. My names Henrietta, but you can call One-eye."

The Egyptian raccoon introduce himself with a smile. "Hi ya, name Slytankuham II, but everyone calls me Tank.

"And I am Rioichi.", said the dragon raccoon as he respectfully bowed.

"Did you say I'm your descendent?", asked Carmelita.

"Yes, we are your's and Sly's ancestors.", said One-eye.

"What are you doing here?"

"What came to protect you. Your in danger at this moment."

"Is Muerta coming for me again?", she shouted frantically in fear.

"Not exactly.",said Rioichi.

"What do you mean? That's what she's been doing to me for the past few days. Did she got bored of me or something?"

"No, but she usually send for her targets."

Carmelita gulped at the word: target.

"Who does she send, exactly?"

One-eye was about to answer when a swirling blue vortex appeared in the room. The three took their fight stances. Carmelita looked at the vortex and became shocked at what she saw. Three identical hyenas. One with a club, another with a bostaff, and the last with nothing.

Tank looked at the vixen saying, "Does that answer your question?"

Tensions were high in the room. The vortex disappeared. One of the hyenas looked at Carmelita's with his emotionless eyes and gave out the order, "Get her!"

The other two ran to the fox, but Rioichi threw a punch at his cheek sending him flying to the wall. Everything turned into a full out battle royal.

The battle to tense, even for an Inspector like her, she had to call for help.

"HEEEEELLLLLPPPP! SOMEONE, HELP ME! HELP…ME!", screamed at the top of her lungs.

The doctor and nurses heard there scream. They tried to open the door, but it was locked.

"Ms. Fox! !", the doctor called.

"Sir,", on of the security guards ran to him. "you have to come see this."

He and the nurses followed him into the security room. Upon arrival, the saw a screen of Carmelita's room. She was hysterically screaming at nothing.

The doctor watched for a moment. She was insane.

"Nurse Delga. I need you to get the sedative. The rest of you come with me.", he order as they ran to her room.

Barkley made his way to Carmelita's room only to hear her call out.

"HELP…ME!"

Barkley ran to his Inspector's room. He stopped as he found a doctor and his nurses trying to open Carmelita's room door.

"Ms. Fox, please unlock the door, we're here to help.", said one of the doctors. All they heard was screaming.

Inside, the three raccoons were still fighting the hyenas. The Egyptian raccoon took one of the hyenas and threw it out the window and watched as it feel. When the hyena hit ground, it's solid body turned into a cloud of dark dust. The dust dissipated into the night.

One the hyenas saw he was distracted by the fallen enemy. The hyena snuck up on the Egyptian raccoon from the back. He jumped on his back and started to bite him. The dragon raccoon to help his brethren, but the second hyena attacked him from the side.

With two hyena distracted, Carmelita ran to the door and unlocked it. She found doctor and his nurses outside. She didn't even hear them at the door.

"Thank God, you have to help me.", she pleaded as she cried.

"Don't worry Ms. Fox, well get you the help you need."

He replied as one of his nurses pulled out a shot containing the sedative.

"What, what are you doing?"

"Miss, Miss, please calm down were trying to help."

From the room, One-eye saw what they were doing to her. She charged at one of the nurses.

The nurse was slammed into the desk. She had knocked the nurse out.

The raccoon turned to Carmelita and gave her a simple command, "RUN!"

The doctor looked at the nurse in pure shock. He was distracted. Carmelita took the advantage by power kicking him in the face, knocking him out. She did what the raccoon beast told her Carmelita made a run for it.

One of the nurses took charge and order the staff to put the building on lockdown, prepare the tranquilizer guns, and to stop Carmelita.

"Nurse, what's going on?", asked Barkley upon arriving at the scene.

"Ms. Fox has finally snapped. Poor thing.", the nurse pitied.

The staff had gathered the tranquilizer gun and he told every patient to lock their doors. Staff and security had spread out to every floor on the building blocking doorways, exits, and entrances.

Upon hearing the commotion, the hyenas knew they had failed to retrieve their target. The hyenas stopped fighting and ran out the window. Unlike their teammate, they landed on a nearby car parked on the side. A swirling blue vortex appeared out of nowhere. The three raccoons watched they made their escape into the vortex and then disappear.

"I can't believe they got away!", said the Egyptian raccoon.

"Relax. At least Carmelita's safe.", the female assured.

"Safe? They almost got to her, killed her even. Plus, Muerta follows her everywhere she goes. How will she be safe? "

"I have a plan."

"And what's the plan?"

"Connor.", said the Rioichi.

"Connor?"

"There's no doubt that our descendent will be with Connor when she goes to sleep. We'll meet her there and explain we'll everything.", said One-eye.

A blue vortex opened in Carmelita's hospital room. The three walked in. The vortex disappeared leaving the room in horrible shape.

Carmelita ran toward the door to the fifth floor only to be blocked by two security guards. She then ran to the opposite direction. Security guards started running after her.

"Wow, now I know how ringtails feels every time we go over this. I should really cut him some slack.",she said to herself.

Carmelita ran around a cover with security far behind.

They turn at the corner still running after her. Little did they know, she was hiding under a table. She ran back to the door.

Meanwhile on the fifth floor…

"Yes, I know it was unexpected. Maybe it's the stress. I know she's gone crazy… the reason why I didn't see this before was because I happened in a day. One minute she's fine, the next a totally different person. It was just out of the blue. Yes sir, I know what I must do. The institute's staff is on its way. But if she goes to that place, what about the Cooper case? Who will take over that? I mean after what he did to her, no one wants the case. This is all his fault. I hope he knows what he has done. Yes,sir. Barkley out.", Barkley's superiors had called because of Carmelita's confirmed "insanity" the other day. He had told them of the current issue in the hospital only making matters worst.

"This is your fault, Cooper.", he hissed.

"Chief Barkley, we're here.", said the rabbit Interpol officer arrive with her team.

"For what? I didn't call you or any team in."

"You didn't, but your higher ups did. They wants us to help with her capture as well as protect the people."

"Fine. Where's my tranquilizer."

"Sorry, chief. Your higher ups ordered you not to be involved in anyway. They said its too personal for you and it might interfere with the mission."

"What?! They can't…"

"It's either you backdown or you and your daughter will lose your jobs, your plus retirement fund."

This had stopped Barkley in his tracks. His daughter was like Carmelita, both wanted a career in law enforcement and both would kill themselves if that dream was ever ruined. It's either his daughter or Carmelita. What can he do?

He saw Carmelita run toward him. The rabbit guard prepared her tranquilizer gun for her.

She ran and ran until she had Barkley in her sights. Carmelita was glad to see Barkley.

"Chief, chief, help me!", she called out.

"He can't, he's been order by his high ups not to get involved with you capture.", said a rabbit Interpol officer.

Carmelita stopped in her tracks, surprised.

"Barkley.", she whispered.

Barkley looked down at the ground sadly. His usual gruff expression was replaced with pain and grief.

The rabbit Interpol officer was by his side holding her gun was out. A tranquilizer gun. The idea finally clicked in her mind. She was going to…take her out. And there was nothing Barkley could do it.

Carmelita started to run. Carmelita was about the door. The guard held the gun up trying to get a clear shot. Barkley just stood there.

"I sorry.", he whispered to the vixen.

As she tried to turn the other direction, he could of sworn he saw tears of pain in her eyes. Carmelita ran the way other way.

BANG!

The gunshot echoed on the floor. There was a long disturbing pause of silence. Patients opened their doors and saw her body. Barkley walked toward the fox as if she was dead. She laying on the floor on her side. Her side slowly rising and falling. The dart had hit her on her shoulder. Carmelita tried hard to stay awake, but the effects of the sedative was too strong for her to fight.

She weakly looked at Barkley. He knelt down lifting her head by her neck.

"Uncle Barkley."

She hadn't called him that in years.

"I'm so sorry, Inspector."

The vixen drifted into a light sleep.

The doctor had informed the people within the hospital building that the lockdown was over. The people were in relief. The psychoward staff had ran in.

The psychoward staff arrived and quickly strapping Carmelita to a stretcher and placed a dog muzzle on her snout. They were about to remove her collar, Barkley spoke up.

"Leave the collar."

They did as they were told. The staff worked quickly to get her into the truck and transport her to the mental institute.

When the truck was all set, they drove off to the institute. Barkley watched outside from within the hospital, seeing his prized pupil disappear into the night.

"Goodbye, Inspector Fox."


	8. Ch 8 Day 1 and 2

("…")- muzzled voice

Carmelita woke up trying to remember everything that happened. Unfortunately, she didn't remember much.

She notices she's in a pure white, padded room. No furniture except a bed, a bathroom, a window with steel bars to prevent anyone from escaping. She became increasingly nervous.

("what's going on?"), all she heard from her mouth were muffles. She looks at her snout and finds a dog muzzle covering it. A thick steel door opens.

"Good morning Carmelita Fox. How are you this morning?", tan, scrawny, meerkat with glasses in a striped shirt, black tie and pants asked. "My name is Dr. Delmas and I'll be your psychiatrist for your time being. I'll be visiting you 1-2 times a week to see if you have improved during your time here."

("Psy, psy, psychiatrist?! What's going on? Who sent me hear? Why do I have this muzzle? What is this place?")

"Now Ms. Fox, calm down. Interpol has sent you here for your well being."

(Sent me where?)

"We're here to help you to get better. By time your released back into so Society, you live a new life."

_"Wait, padded room, psychiatrist, muzzle? Mios dios, I'm in an mental institute. Interpol really thinks I'm insane.", she displayed horror on her face._

"Come along , we need to discuss a few things."

A chimpanzee nurse comes into the room with a leash. Carmelita narrowed her eyes at the nurse as she came closer. Even behind her muzzle they could here her growling.

"Nuh, uh, uh. Carmelita, you know better. Be a good girl and maybe we can just move things along smoothly. I don't want to use this on you, now do you."

A second chimpanzee nurse came up from the side of the door. Shot was preparing a shot filled with a clear liquid. Sedative. Carmelita's had no choice but to obey.

The nurse with the leash clipped it to her collar. She lead Carmelita out and the two followed Dr. Delmas to his office.

They walk down the hallway and sees guards lined up on each side of the hallway walls holding shotguns that contained sleeping darts.

They headed to the floor lobby. It's walls were light green and its carpets were a velvet red. Various people of different ages walked around as if they didn't know where they were going. Nurses acted like they were in charge of the place. The patients looked liked they were hollow shells of their former selves, mindless zombies. Carmelita and the group exit the lobby. She would never forget what she saw.

They reach Dr. Delmas's office. Red carpet, light blue walls, a bookshelf, desk, couch, and behind it, a large window viewing the rooftops of Paris. Carmelita is brought in and sits on the couch.

"Now you just wait right here, Ms. Fox. I'll be right back."

The psychiatrist left leaving the fox alone. Carmelita turns around and sees the city of Paris savoring every sight. It would be days before she can see the outside world again. She thinks back to her life before this. Interpol, chasing Cooper, Sly Cooper flirting with her, Sly visiting her, traveling around the world, going on the weirdest, but most amazing adventures as well as arresting criminals along the way. She sighs.

Delmas returns with his board and pen. "Okay, let's begin. Nurse, can you remove the muzzle, please."

The nurse did as she was told and removed Carmelita's muzzle from her mouth.

"So, Carmelita Fox. How have you been?", he asked nicely.

Carmelita didn't know what she was feeling. She felt anxious, angry, and sad all at the same time. She had to chose a good answer or else she'll be giving them more reasons to keep her here. "Um, uh, fine. I guess."

"Mm huh, now Carmelita. Or do you prefer to be called Ms. Fox, knowing you authoritative psychology? A little too formal?"

"You can call me Carmelita.", she said shyly.

"Alright, I'm going to ask a few questions. Tell me if I ask something too personal or your not ready to answer."

Carmelita nodded.

"Ok first question. I already know that you were the Inspector for the French Interpol. How has you job treated you? Any problems with anyone? You boss, friends, or colleagues?

They were a lot of things that happen over there. Barkley half the time thinks she's a failure for failing to capture Sly Cooper due to his gruff nature. He even threaten to fire her several times or doc her pay if she didn't capture him soon.

As for friends, well, the only friends she ever had secretly and ironically was the Cooper gang.  
Most of the woman hated her not just because of her good looks, but for her authority and her capture records. To show how much they resent her they would ridicule her for again not capturing Cooper, start coming up with rumors, and talk smack about her.  
As for the men, they saw her as an object. Eye candy. They would whistle, make moves, and on occasion touch her in uncomfortable ways.

Colleagues, they all hated her in some way. They hated how she was groom by Barkley and his superiors, even Barkley's daughter, Brittany, got stealing her father's attention from her. In reality they saw her as a failure. Children wanting the exact brand of toys for Christmas and getting a cheap second rate brand instead. They didn't care if she caught the the world's second biggest criminal or it she had captured a hundred wanted men, they wanted only one criminal in the list, Sly Cooper. Some of the men that hated her for her capture records and recognition. Most kept their titles, but were reduced to desk jobs and arresting small time criminals, or worst, school officers. The young interns would pull pranks on her and get away with it. She would be humiliated in front of floor. Word would get out and spread like wildfire across the entire building and hear about it for a week.

So many times her confidence had been shot. The only things that calms her down from sadness or her temper is working on case files. They were various times she had actual breakdowns. Even thoughts of suicide entered her mind. That's why she always liked going on her nightly patrols. Hoping for Cooper to show up to capture him or for him comfort her.

"Carmelita?"

The vixen was snapped out of her trance.

"Carmelita. How is you job?"

She thought of the answer, she thought of the answer not wanting to go through it all. "I guess I would say, I've been hurt there so many times in so many ways."

"Uh-huh.", was all he said as he started to write all this down. "Have you been stressed?"

"Yes."

"Tell me, your superiors said that you were pretending to be attacked by an monster is the correct?"

"Demon."

"Alright. We did you start seeing this "demon" exactly?"

"A few days ago."

"Okay, anything else?"

"Yes. Whenever I go into a deep sleep. I see Connor Cooper."

"Connor Cooper? The Connor Cooper? You see him in your dreams?"

The vixen nodded as he wrote this down on his board.

"And he told me that I am his third daughter."

"So you mean to tell me that an invisible demon had attacked you, then you say you see Connor Cooper in you Dreams, now your telling me that he told you that your his daughter. Carmelita, maybe your just hallucinating things in you mind from maybe stress loneliness. Your like a child that needs attent…"

"You may not see her, but I can. I telling you, you can't see him with the naked eye, even Sly Cooper when he was trying to save me"

"Sly Cooper,saving you? A bit far fetched. He's a thief, a crook. No way he would ever save you."

"It's true. Every time I'm in danger and I'm unable to save myself, he and his amigos would rescue me."

The meerkat sighed realizing he can't win with her. He makes one final comment that he would ever regret slipping out of his mouth, "Well, Carmelita, I think it's all in your head. Invisible demons, seeing dead people in your sleep, criminals saving you as if this was some kind of fairy tale. This doesn't make sense. I believe that job of yours has rose your stress levels to an all time high. You must be living in a world…"

"Oh would you shut the hell up!", Carmelita was finally fed up with his drabble. Tell her how she feels and why was she feeling them then saying saying in a long definition that she was a nut.

"Ms. Fox, please. Loud is not allowed."

"FUCK THAT!"

"Remember we're trying to help you get better?"

"By telling me how I feel and why? Like I'm a loon?"

"Noboby said you're a loon. Just a day dreamer."

"Then why am I here in an mental hospital full of people that act like they have no souls and "nurses" that think they know everything. Well, I'll tell you what, this place is full of mindless or showiness assholes. Not only the patients are mental, but so are you and the staff.", she started to yell at the top of her lungs. She took deep breathes as she started back up again.

"Then there's people like you. You and those how many millions of psychologists in France, if not, the world who treat psychology as a science. Well news flash string bean it's not. Just because you put -ology at the end of a word does not make it a science, but yet you like to treat it that way, so you guys bring people here to "experiment" your mental theories on us. You feel depressed inside because you are called the outcast of science itself. The only reason why places like this exists is to make you guys feel better about yourselves and feel superior to anyone who enters this God forsaken, mind fucking hell hole!", she pointed to him with fire in her words. Her face was as red as her orange fur and she huffed and puffed like a wolf. Delmas wrote a everything down from her rant of rage.

"Maybe we can add this to the list of causes.", after all that, Dr. Delmas somehow remained calm.

"Add what to the list ?", Carmelita was now blowing steam.

"You seem to have pent up rage."  
Challenge Accepted.

SMACK!  
Challenge Regretted.

Carmelita kicked the poor Dr. Delmas in the face and sent him flying to his bookshelf, knocking him out. The nurse scurried to get muzzle. Outside, a security was walking by Delmas's office when he heard fighting going on inside.

"Everything alright, Dr. Delmas?", he opens the door to see Delmas knocked out by the bookshelf,m and the two nurses trying to muzzle the fox. Judging by the bleeding bite marks on one of them, she had been fighting with Carmelita and lost multiple times. There was so much chaos going on they didn't notice him.

The guard pulled out his shotgun and tried to take the shot. He pulled the trigger. BANG!

Instant knockout. A nurse got up and saw the guard at the door.  
She thanked him then muzzled Carmelita. The guard called for two nurses and two guards for help. With in two minutes, the two nurses called the hospital about Dr. Delmas's condition. The two guards had carried Carmelita off to her cell. Delmas's nurse picked up the reports and took them to the head of the mental institute.

2 hour later…  
4:00 pm  
Carmelita woke up in the same white room where she started.

Carmelita didn't know what to do for the time being. She had nothing to do. She just paced around back and forth. She would just sit in one spot, then get up and sit in another spot, and another, and another, then lay in bed, and start all over again. Chew on some bones, then walk back to the same spot. She felt like a horse who's been left in a stall, not allowed to graze.

Time passed by slowly she felt it would never end. It finally reach 10pm. Bedtime. She had walked to her bed. I wasn't long til she went to sleep. She knew she was going to have a long day ahead of her.

Next morning…  
The sun had lit up the white room.  
The vixen didn't feel like waking up today or doing anything or be around anyone. The opened revealing two guards. One guard had shotgun loaded with tranquilizer darts and the other with a leash. They clipped the leash to her collar and walked her to the lunch room for breakfast.

When they arrived, the room was just down right depressing. The walls were grey and had dark spots from over the years. The floors were hard, dark gray and too had dark spots. The tables were made of metal and was cold. They were set in rows of three, each having 6 tables. But what was really depressing was the people. Some of them were drooling into their food as if they were 2 year olds. Some like a dog sitting in the second row of tables was being spoon fed by an elephant nurse, like a baby. Others didnt eat their food, only looked at it.

Carmelita was lead to a table of drooling, sick, and drepressing people. A nurse came to Carmelita and set down tray what seemed to be a bowl of mush with apple slices in it. The nurse removes her muzzle. Carmelita picked spoon and scooped up the food. She put the spoon in her mouth. It tasted like nothing at all. Even with the apple slices, it tasted like someone just put apple sliced in a bowl of water. She felt like giving up afterwards, but her stomach started of growl. She realized she hadn't eaten anything in two days and the only time she at was when she was with Connor, but she didn't actually put anything into her stomach. The poor fox saw that she had no choice, but to eat what was there or starve.

As much as she hated it, she knew she had to live with it. After breakfast, her muzzle was placed back on her snout. The guards had taken her to the lobby. She looks around and sees that the people were a little more lively. Although, she was still uncomfortable. The room was silent. Some just sat there doing nothing. Nurses gathered groups of patients in circles to talk about their problems and spoke to them like little kids.

Carmelita decided to isolate herself from the rest in an empty area. There, a couple of couches, a coffee table with a few magazines and newspapers and a vase full of flowers, and a television. On there was the news.

"Oh-ho boy, looks like we got a list here today, right Tom?", said female goat.

"Certainly is, Nancy.", said a big horn ram." Today's top story, Inspector Paranoia Fox. Former Inspector Carmelita Montoya Fox was discharged of her duties in Interpol just yesterday."

"Why's that, Tom?"

"Because Interpol had declared her mentally ill. Interpol had released two videos of Carmelita Fox moving in weird positions. In her defense, Carmelita said that she was "attacked" by an invisible demon. I mean really, there are no such things as demons,ghosts, or monsters. There's nothing there."

"I don't know Tom. What about the cuts she has gotten? They can't be hers, their too deep for her finger nails."

At least, someone agrees with her.

"Maybe she got it in the process. Seems legit."

"I guess. Poor Carmelita, her career flushed down the toilet. But her moving in weird positions and cutting herself while doing it, doesn't make much sense does it."

" Maybe. Still, a pretty short career if you ask me."

Just them talking about it made Carmelita sick to her stomach, especially when she just ate.

"Speaking of careers, look who just stepped up to the career plate in theirs. Interpol had replaced the former Inspector Fox with a fresh new one: Brittany Marie Barkley, daughter of Chief Barkley, is now the new Inspector of the French Interpol. Not only that, but she had also taken on the Cooper case. I'll tell you what, looks like life had stuck a huge middle up Fox's ass."

"Not to mention her family legacy which brings up another question: what will become of Carmelita Fox and her family legacy after this?"

"Don't know, I were her I would get another job and forget it all."

"Oh, Tom. In other words, racism rears its ugly head again after a new club gets its first shoot out within a week."

Carmelita couldn't believe it. She won't believe it. She could just imagine Interpol laughing at her behind her back. The very same police force she was loyal to has now turned her back on her. Her entire life and time working her way up starting from the bottom to the top rank of inspector, years of hard work only to have it crumble in 1 week.

Carmelita looks at the coffee table to see a newspaper, front story:  
FOX DEMOTED, BADGER PROMOTED. The Down Fall of Carmelita Montoya Fox and the Fox Family.

Carmelita was horrified to see the wording and a picture of her drugged and on a stretcher being carried over to the mental hospital's truck. There, she knew she had enough.

("Security?"), she called out to them. The two guards turn their heads towards her. They saw she on a verge of tears. She asked in a soft voice, ("Please take me back to my cell.")

They were confused, but they did ask she asked and lead her to her cell.

Once in her cell, she walked to her bed. She laid down and started to cry to herself. She finally faced reality, her life was over. She's been kicked out of Interpol, is seen as a nut to society, ended up in a depressing mental hospital where everyone is treated like a baby, now she was a disgrace to her former colleagues and probably to the Fox Family. The vixen cried for the rest of the day,soon crying herself to sleep hoping Connor would be there to comfort her.

**Poor Carmelita. Her life has been destroyed all in one day. Brace yourselves for the next chapter of Dark Branches. I do not own "loud is not allowed" phrase. Now that came "King of the Hill" episode when people thought Hank was abusing Bobby and Peggy and was being harass by this scrawny red head nerd from the state.**


End file.
